Thief scared off by victim's screams

JOHOR BARU - A loud scream from a Singaporean woman stopped a habitual offender from stealing her car at a petrol station in Jalan Pandan, Malaysia.

The 32-year-old woman was filling petrol when the 31-year-old suspect approached her on Saturday at around 3pm.

Johor Baru (South) OCPD Asst Comm Sulaiman Salleh said the suspect threatened to harm the woman if she did not hand over the car keys.

"Fearing the worst, the woman throw the keys away and gave a loud scream, which alerted several people, including the petrol station workers.

"This startled the suspect and within seconds he found himself being cornered by the public, who then apprehended him and handed him to the police," he said, adding that the suspect, an unemployed man, was not carrying any weapons.

ACP Sulaiman said that initial checks on the suspect's background revealed that he had a history of drug abuse cases, and had committed a snatch theft and a motorcycle theft.

ACP Sulaiman added that the case was being investigated under Section 392 of the Penal Code for robbery.